Ixnay to these Names

There are many names in the English language that exclude or are offensive to females. Take a look at this list of exclusionary words and their alternatives.

Exclusionary

Nonexclusionary

Adman

Ad writer

Brotherhood of man

Humankind, human family

Caveman

Cave dweller

Chairman

Chair, chairperson

Cleaning lady

House cleaner

Common man

Human, common citizen

Cover girl

Cover model

Fatherland

Homeland

Fireman

Firefighter

Fisherman

Fisher

Forefather

Ancestor

Foreman

Supervisor

Founding fathers

Founders

Leading lady

Lead

Mailman

Mail carrier, postal worker

Man about town

Worldly person

Man in the street

Average person

Mankind

Humankind, humanity

Man-made

Artificial

Manned

Staffed, piloted

Manpower

Work force, employees

Manpowered

Human powered, people powered

Old wives' tale

Superstition, folktale

Policeman

Police officer

Showgirl

Performer, dancer

Stewardess

Flight attendant

Waterboy

Water carrier

Weatherman

Weather forecaster, meteorologist

Gender-Specific Language

In 1984 the Minnesota State Legislature ordered that all gender-specific language, which only refers to one gender, usually males, be removed from the state laws. After two years of work, the rewritten laws were adopted. Only 301 of 20,000 pronouns were feminine. “His” was changed 10,000 times and “he” was changed 6,000 times.